Judicial Planning Working Group Report

An effective courts system that provides timely access to justice is of central importance to society. As population demographics have evolved in recent years, the justice system must be fully responsive to the needs of a new Ireland.

A Programme for Government commitment was to establish a working group to consider the number of, and type of, judges required to ensure the efficient administration of justice over the next five years.

The Judicial Planning Working Group (JPWG) was established by the Department of Justice in 2021 to bring a more strategic focus to judicial recruitment.

The JPWG Report was submitted to the Minister for Justice on 6 January 2023 and received government approval on 21 January 2023.

The core task of the JPWG was to consider the number and type of judges required to ensure the efficient administration of Justice over the next five years in the first instance, but also with a view to the medium to long term.

To help inform the work of the Group, the OECD was commissioned to prepare an independent review of judicial resource needs, including benchmarks against international comparators. The OECD report can be found on their website.

The Working Group concluded that the Irish judiciary is undersized in relation to international standards and the demographics of Ireland. It was found that judges face an increased volume and complexity of caseloads and are impacted by new work, as compared to their predecessors. Furthermore, it was found that there are constraints in the place in relation to how judges can be brought into the system and supported to work effectively.

The Working Group acknowledged the initiatives underway, such as the Courts Modernisation Programme, and underlines the importance of progressing steadily on these.

The Report highlights the importance of developing a structured system for planning and deploying judicial resources which recognises organisational interdependencies and a whole of system approach.

The final Report makes 54 recommendations including:

• a substantial increase in judicial numbers over the coming years, starting early in 2023 with a phased approach. In total, it is recommending that 44 additional Judges be appointed in two phases. Additional numbers in further phases should be determined by a review in 2025 of judicial needs up to 2028
• additional resources will be required by the Courts Service to support the number of additional judges
• a structured system for assessing judicial resource requirements and related support resources should be put in place jointly by the Courts Service and the Department of Justice through a planned approach based on comprehensive data and a whole of system approach
• the design of any new or policy changes that involve the use of court/judicial time should be considered to see if alternative enforcement mechanisms are available
• an evidence based, comprehensive and strategic approach to Human Resource Management for the judiciary should be developed

Officials in the Department of Justice are in the process of establishing an implementation programme to oversee the delivery of the recommendations.

Central to this process will be the development of a suite of indicators that will demonstrate the impact of any judges appointed under the initial phase and are required before a second phase can be appointed. This work has already commenced and there is widespread recognition of its importance.

The intention of the implementation team, among other things, is to develop an action plan; engage with all relevant stakeholders; establish the key deliverables for the department and other stakeholders; engage in quarterly meetings; and ensure a monitoring role within the department.

Open Consultation: Judicial Planning Working Group